Knitting machine



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KNITTING MACHINE June 20, 1933.

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KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 2. 1926 17 Sheets-Sheet 16 Juhe 20, 1933. M. c. MILLER 1,914,954 KNITTING MACHINE Filed July 2, 1926 Q 17 Sheets-Sheet 1'7 Patented June 1933 MAX 0. MILLER, F CUMBERLAND, RHODE ISLAND KNITTING MACHINE Application filed July 2,

The present invention relates to knitting machines and is herein shown as embodied in a circular spring needle machine in which the yarn is fed to the needles by means of sinkers which kink the yarn about the shanks of the needles. It is to be understood, however, that certain features of the invention are also well adapted for use in types of machines other than circular or in machines which employ latch or other forms of needles and that while the machine hereinafter specifically described makes use of sinkers to feed the yarn to the needles many features of the invention are well adapted for use in machines in which the yarn is fed directly to the needles.

An important featureof the present invention is embodied in a construction and arrangement of parts which enables a circular spring needle knitting machine, having yarn feeding sinkers, to produce, while doing reciprocating knitting, what is known as split fabric. Fabric of this character, for instance a split foot or a split high splice, has heretofore been produced on latch needle hosiery machines but so far as I am aware no one heretofore has fed spring needle machine having its needles and cooperating knitting elements so ,constructed, arranged and operated as to be capable of knitting in this manner. This feature of the present invention is, therefore, considered to be generic in character and capable of embodiment in any construction and arrangement of parts having the same general principle of operation as the embodiment herein described. In the illustrated embodimentof this and other features of the invention the needles, which are carried ma 0 needle cylinder, as is customary in circular knitting machines and all together form a complete circle, are divided into two sets or series for knitting the two sections of the split fabric, said series being separated at each end by a suture needle for joining the two sections of fabric together. The illustrated machine is designed primarily for the production of seamless hosiery, split fabric being knit in forming a high splice above the heel and in forming a split foot, and the sebeen able to devise a sinker 1926. Serial No. 120,046.

ries of needles which form the high splice and the bottom of the foot being also utilized in knitting the heel while the other series of needles hold the instep loops. Accordingly, the two series of needles may be termed heel needles and instep needles. It is to be understood, however, that the use of these terms is for convenience only and is not to be considered as limiting the construction except as otherwise expressly stated in the claims to use in hosiery machines or to an arrangement in which one set of needles is also used to knit a heel.

Toactuate the needles two sets of knitting cams are provided, one set for each series of needles, and since it is necessary, on each relative reciprocation of the needle cams and needles, to carry some of the needles of each series past both sets of cams in order to ensure the actuation of all of the needles of each series by its own set of cams, controlling means are provided for causing the needles of each series to be actuated while passing its own set of cams and to remain idle while passing the other set of cams. Two yarn feeds are provided, as is usual inlatch needle split foot machines, at diametrically opposite points of the needle circle, one feed, which for convenience may be termed the back feed, supply the heel series of needles and the other feed, which for convenience may be termed the front feed, supplying the instep series of needles. The suture needles, as has been stated, are utilized to join the two fabric sections together, and to this end are actuated to take yarn alternately from each feed, means being provided for causing each suture needle to be actuated by one set of knitting cams during the relative reciprocation of the needles and cams in one direction and to be actuated by'the other set of cams during the reciprocation in the opposite direction.

In the illustrated machine the relative movement of the needles and knitting cams is produced by a rotative movement of the needle cylinder and during reciprocating knitting the cylinder is reciprocated through a complete revolution as is customary in most circular knitting machines. At the end of each reciprocation the heel needles are in the front half of the needle circle and the instep needles are in the rear half, or in other words the heel needles are in a semicircle opposite the heel knitting cams and rear yarn feed with the ends of the semicircle half way between the front and rear yarn feeds. The yarn, therefore, extends from the last active needle of the heel series to the rear yarn feed and from the last active instep needle to the front yarn feed. Upon reversal the last active needle of each series becomes a leading needle and as it moves towards a yarn feeding eye the yarn between the needle and the eye must be taken up so that it can be fed accurately to the first active needle of the series after the needle passes the eye. To enable this yarn to be taken up properly in a sinker fed spring needle machine, means are provided for eliminating the sinker action on the idle needles so that no kinks are formed in the lengths of yarn extending from the last active needle of each series to the corresponding yarn feeding eye. The uncertain and ineffective action of the takeup which would result from the kinking of the yarn is thus avoided andalso injury or breaking of the yarn which might be occasioned by repeated kinking. In the specific construction described the needles, while idle, are carried below the sinker level, the needle, needle jack and control sliders of my pending application, Serial No. 631,071, filed April 10, 1923, Patent No. 1,809,057, being used, whereby the idle needles are not only carried below the yarn sinking level but are out of knitting cam influence so that no loop drawing or straining movement is imparted to the idle needles tending to distort or break the loops held by them.

In a sinker fed spring needle machine it is necessary that the yarn be kinked about each needle and at a level which permits the needle beard to be closed between the new yarn and the old loop standing around the shank of the needle so that during the retraction of the needle the new yarn may enter the needle hook and be drawn down as a new loop while the old loop is cast over the end of the needle. In rotary knitting the yarn leads directly from one sinker to the next, each sinker acting to support the yarn at the proper level to be acted upon by the next sinker. In reciprocating knitting, however, upon each reversal, as the leading needle passes the yarn eye, the yarn leads rearwardly towards the yarn eye from the leading needle at a level lower than the sinker level. To meet this condition and cause the yarn to be sunk accurately and with certainty about the first active needle on reversal, means are provided for supporting the yarn leading from the last loop of the previous course in the path of the sinker which feeds the yarn to the first active needle. Also the sinkers are arranged at such a level that on reversal the length of yarn extending from the last loop of the previous course around the first active needle is substantially the same as the length of yarn extending around each needle from sinker to sinker so that the first loop of each course formed during reciprocating knitting does not differ appreciably in length from the other loops of the course. For supporting the yarn in the path of the sinker which feeds the yarn to the first active needle on reversal and to permit the sinkers to act on the desired level, a novel construction and arrangement of web holders and sinkers is provided, which construction and arrangement together with a construction and arrangement of pressers with which the illustrated machine is also provided form the subject matter of applicants pending application, Serial No. 71,316, filed November 25, 1925.

The illustrated machine is adapted for the production of fine gage split foot hosiery from thin yarn. \Vhile certain parts of the stocking, for instance the high splice or the foot, are being knitted, a heavy yarn is fed to the heel series of needles which yarn requires a greater movement beyond the back of the needles by the web holders than the very much thinner yarn fed to the instep series of needles. The machine is provided with two sets of web holder cams correspond ing to the knitting cams of the two series of needles, past which all of the web holders are carried during each reciprocation of the needle cylinder, and in order to prevent straining and possibly cutting of the loops of thin yarn held by the instep needles by the excessive web holder movement imparted by the heel vided whereby the web holders of the instep series of needles are actuated only by the instep web holder cams during split fabric knitting. Also during the formation of the heel while the instep needles hold idle a series of loops of their yarn the heel web holder cams are prevented from acting on the instep web holders and thereby straining or cutting the instep loops.

In any machine adapted to do reciprocat ing knitting it is desirable that the loop drawing elements be given exactly the same extent of movement during the knitting in each direction as otherwise an irregular and variable fabric will be produced. This is especially important in a fine gage hosiery machine in which part of the leg and foot fabric is produced by reciprocating knitting any irregularity or imperfection in the thin instep fabric being particularly noticeable and objectionable. To secure this result a feature of the present invention is embodied in a sinker cam ring construction making use of a single cam point arranged to operate the loop drawing sinkers during the relative rotation of the cam and sinkers in each direction. The use or two cams is thus avolded wlth the attendant difliculty of causing them to draw exactly alike when first put into the machine and of keeping them alike in spite of the fact that they must wear unevenly on account of one of them being used during both rotary and reciprocating knitting while the other is used' only during reciprocating knitting.

Another feature of the present, invention which also contributes to the uniform and satisfactory operation of the machine in producing split fabric while doing reciprocating knitting, is embodied in a construction making use of a single point presser cam arranged to operate the pressers during the relative rotation of the cam and pressers in each direction.

The features of invention above referred to, while not necessarily limited to use in a circular sinker fed spring needle machine capable of producing split fabric, are peculiarly adapted for such a machine and by their cooperation make the successful production of split fabric in such a machine possible.

In addition to the features of invention above referred to, the illustrated machine also embodies other features of invention highly useful in circular sinker fed spring needle machines. Thus the illustrated machine is provided with means for varying the throw of the sinkers to produce tighter or looser stitches, and means are also provided for adjusting the throw of the Web holders proportionately as the sinkers are caused to take more or less yarn. The throats of the web holders are thus caused to goin beyond the back line of the needles the proper amount for the various loop lengths drawn by the sinkers while acting upon the different weights of yarn which may be used and at different portions of the fabric. In this connection it may be noted that the mechanism of the illustrated machine through which the stitch is tightened and loosened embodies an improved mechanical construction which does not require pattern rest cams for its operation as is customary in stitch tightening and loosening mechanisms which have heretofore been used in various types of knitting machines.

In accordance with another feature of the present invention, the yarn which has been sunk or kinked around the needles by the sinkers is formed into finished loops by the web holders instead of by the needles, the lightly held kinked yarn being formed into finished loops by the inward movement of the web holders as the needles are raised to take the next course of yarn. By forming the finished loops in this manner, it is possible to eliminate a variable loop drawing movement of the needles which would otherwise be necessary as the amount of yarn fed by the sinkers is varied. Also the strain which would be placed on the needle hooks if the needle were to draw the new yarn into finished loops is eliminated and consequently the use of a needle having a very thin wire hook construction is made possible. Since the needle is not obliged tostand the strain of drawing the yarn into a finished loop, it is possible to weaken considerably the wire forming the needle hook with the result that the hook which is continually being acted upon by the pressing of the beard into the eye of the needle has a much longer life. This is a feature of considerable importance in fine gage machines where, unless this weak wire hook is resorted to, the needles will quickly fatigue and break at their hook ends especially when attempts are made to operate them at high speed.

To eliminate another difliculty which has been encountered in machines in which an attempt has been made to employ sinkers in connection with spring beard needles, a feature of the present invention contemplates actuating the needles in such a manner that when they are in their highest position the tips of their beards are slightly below the top line of the sinkers.- When the needles are raised higher than this unless the needles and sinkers are straight and kept straight, the beard, as a needle is drawn down, is very liable to pass to one side or the other over the sinkers between which the needle shank has been projected and on continued downward movement of the needle the beard will be torn off. Even where the needles and sinkers are absolutely straight this is liable to happen on account of the sinkers and needles not being exactly alined,on account of inaccuracies in the sinker and needle supports, or on account of vibration caused by the high speed of rotation or reciprocation of the machine parts.

Other features of the present invention are embodied in a construction by which the needles are leveled at the knock-over to permit the transfer to the needles of a rib top through the use of a quill ring and by which the other knitting elements which cooperate with the needles are rendered inoperative while the quill ring is in the machine. Liability of injury to the quills of the quill ring by the contact therewith of the web holders, sinkers or pressers is thus eliminated.

In addition to the features above referred to, the illustrated machine also embodies certain novel constructions, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

The several features of the present invention and the advantages secured thereby will be readily understood by those skilled in the art from the following specific description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings illustrating a circular sinker fed spring needle hosiery machine embodying the features of the invention.

Referring to the drawings: Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the assembled knitting head and pattern mechanism of the machine; Fig. 

